Personal Trainer Vs Gym Membership

Emphasis on fitness is in the limelight like never before. Size zero is in vogue and the uber lean, skinny models and movie stars have gained the status of demi-gods. With this passion for looking good and the desire to keep up with the current fashion, people have started focusing on fitness and are ready to spend to achieve that perfect body. In chasing dreams of the lean, toned look, people are in a mad rush to join a gym and workout extremely hard.

However, all this media hype for toned bodies and high fashion has started a positive train of thought in people. As a result of this increased awareness, people are turning health conscious and cutting down on junk food. Packaged food is being replaced by fresh, home made food which is of high nutritional value. Vegetarianism has touched the lives of people around the globe. In addition to all this, a five day workout at the gym has become a vital part of the daily routine. In fact so much that office-goers utilise some part of their lunch break to get a quick, sweaty workout.

With this entire fetish for exercise and workouts, fitness centers have become jam packed with people. A gym is not so beneficial as compared to getting a personal trainer for oneself. In the former, one gets puzzled as to where to begin with so many equipments to work upon. Also, the individual may not use the correct posture or may use the equipment in the wrong way, which will result in not having the desirable effect on the body. Time is a crucial factor too, since not everyone can spend hours at the gym. In such a scenario, it becomes tough to choose the right equipment, as one cannot use all the machinery daily. This results in a half-baked, poor workout schedule.

To solve this problem, a personal trainer is any day a better choice than enrolling in a gym. A fitness trainer would guide you through all the exercises and the prime focus becomes the individual. Also, he would design specific workouts which have high quality effect. With his vast knowledge, you would have the best of combinations of various exercises like strength training and cardio, which burn fat at a rapid rate. If you are strapped for time, he would make you do a particular set of exercises with more repetitions which would consume lesser time. Exercises at gym do not give out the proper result, if the correct sequence of using the equipments is not followed.

Lifting weights, without a proper trainer is risky as it can cause damage to the spinal cord or a injury. A good personal trainer would mix cardio exercises with rejuvenating activities like aerobics, yoga. On contrary to workouts at gym, this would make the workout fun and cut out boredom. If you have a particular problem like back ache or arthritis, he would carefully avoid all those exercises which may cause it to aggravate further. Instead he would introduce into your workout, different exercises which would give the same benefits as those exercises to be avoided would give. This makes it different from working out in a gym, as one may get puzzled about the exact function of a piece of equipment.

In a nutshell, the variety and uniqueness of workouts performed will have a good effect on the body. As you exercise with interest and enthusiasm, soon the results will start showing on your body. Whereas a dull and drab workout at a gym may not give the required result, the zeal to exercise doubles if done with a personal trainer, who is the constant source of guidance.

So, walk down the fitness trail to be healthy, fit and fine.

The Fat Burning Zone

Debunking the Myth Of the Fat Burning Zone
Many exercisers are under the mistaken impression that fat is only burned at specific exercise intensities and hence weight loss will only occur if you always exercise at these moderate effort levels. Nothing could be further from the truth! Losing body fat and keeping it off permanently requires a carefully planned exercise program that features aerobic AND anaerobic workouts, as well as careful attention to diet and performance nutrition.

Fat is used for fuel during exercise at a variety of intensity levels. At rest and at moderate heart rates, your body's preferred fuel choice is fat. As exercise intensity increases, you burn progressively more glucose. At anaerobic threshold heart rates, you burn almost entirely glucose and very little fat.


How AEROBIC Workouts Promote Fat Loss

To achieve permanent weight management, you must TRAIN your body to prefer fat for fuel 24 hours a day. This is accomplished by building an aerobic base. Your body is like a computer: when you train it to burn fat during low intensity aerobic workouts, it learns to do this around the clock.

You must also fuel your body with healthy, nutritious foods at the right times to prevent metabolism problems that result from exercise-induced caloric depletion. The main mistake people make is restricting calories at crucial times: before, during and after workouts. Restricting calories and training will NOT result in permanent fat loss - it will result in energy level fluctuations, poor recovery and increased stress response to workouts.

When you eat healthy, supplement properly and build a strong aerobic base, you are ready to enjoy the fitness and weight loss benefits that anaerobic workouts provide.


How ANAEROBIC Workouts Promote Fat Loss

Even though you are not burning much fat during a high intensity workout, these workouts are still crucial to the success of your weight loss exercise goals.

The intensity of anaerobic exercise stimulates an increased demand for calories and an elevated body temperature. These factors generate an increase in your metabolic rate (the rate at which you burn calories) that lasts for several hours after your workout.

Since your preferred fuel choice at rest is fat, you will burn more fat around the clock because of your glucose-burning workout! However wonderful this sounds, many exercisers take shortcuts that sabotage the weight loss benefits of high intensity workouts.

The round-the-clock increase in metabolism caused by an effective training program is the only true way to lose weight. Consider that during a vigorous hour of exercise, you burn between 500-800 calories. A tall glass of orange juice and a bran muffin get you nearly back to even.

Many exercisers skip the aerobic base training and go right for the high intensity workouts. When you ignore base training OR engage in too many anaerobic workouts, your body learns to prefer sugar for fuel (like a computer, remember?) 24-hours a day.

Excessive anaerobic training compromises your fat burning system and causes you to crave sugar, especially at night. Fat stays on your body and your brain tells you to consume sugar all day!

But what if you don’t consume sugar all day?

What if your will power can beat the sugar cravings?

Food Cravings and How to Beat Them
Cravings can be defined as the intense longing for a particular type of food and are something that more than 60% of the population have had. Are these “all in the head” or is there some explanation to why we crave?

Nutritional Reasons
It may be that some cravings are related to nutrition. This is certainly true when it comes to carbohydrates and low blood sugar. Low blood sugar can affect appetite fairly quickly, leaving you hungry and craving carbohydrate type foods. This doesn’t explain cravings for high fat sugary foods in place of carbohydrates such as pasta or potatoes.
It is likely that the craving for high fat, sugary foods is due to the palatability of these. Fat helps carry flavour, which is why high fat foods taste good. Sweetness is a flavour that humans were born liking, while other flavours are acquired.

Dieter’s Cravings
Food cravings are also common in dieters. Diets often focus on deprivation of certain foods and cravings for “forbidden” foods become strong, particularly because the food is labelled as “forbidden. When resistance to temptation gives way, guilt more than often follows. To avoid this situation, don’t label foods. Look for smart alternatives. For example, when craving fries, don’t go for fast food, buy a packet of oven bake low fat fries and have a small portion.

How to Beat Cravings
The trick is not to beat it, but to go with it in a more healthy way. Saying no when you really feel like something is likely to resolve in a binge later on. A good tip is to wait 20 minuets. If you’re still having a craving, allow yourself to have a small portion. For example, a mini candy bar rather than a giant one. This will give you a taste without going overboard on fat and calories. Another tip is to find a healthier alternative for your craving. Feel like something crunchy and salty? Instead of chips, go for a small handful of pretzels. Although these are still high in salt, they are low in fat.
Watching your portion size and swapping choices will allow a little taste without going overboard.

Good Luck.